Unauthorized poster claiming COVID-19 vaccine 'could kill you' removed from BK bus stop

Bus Stop
The disinformation poster includes reasons like “It could kill you,” “Real world data demonstration vaccine deadliness and inefficacy” and “most vaccine side effects go unreported.” Photo credit @allisongeroi/Twitter

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- An unauthorized anti-vaccine poster was spotted at a Brooklyn bus stop Thursday, falsely trying to dupe commuters into thinking the shot “promotes the spread of COVID-19.”

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The poster was found at a B43 bus stop shelter at Carroll Street and Kingston Avenue in Crown Heights, proclaiming the “top ten reasons NOT to get vaccinated against COVID-19.”

The disinformation poster includes reasons like “It could kill you,” “Real world data demonstration vaccine deadliness and inefficacy” and “most vaccine side effects go unreported.”

A New York Times reporter pointed out that the poster was made to mirror the style of a city campaign that encourages people to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The shelter is managed by the city in partnership with JCDecaux — and both the Department of Transportation and the company said the poster being placed there was not with their permission.

A DOT spokesperson said the poster would be coming down “today,” adding that “street furniture will not promote vaccine disinformation in our city.”

Danielle Filson, spokesperson for Mayor Bill de Blasio added, “Not OK. This is coming down ASAP. We do not promote vaccine disinformation in our city. Full stop. DOT didn't sell this ad - it's possible someone pried open the glass casing. This is being investigated.”

JCDecaux said in a statement to WINS, “The anti-vaccination ad you are inquiring about was not installed by JCDecaux but was placed in the bus shelter in an unauthorized manner. JCDecaux did not approve, install or receive payment for the copy.”

“The copy violates the advertising guidelines for the program and deprived the lawful advertiser of their advertising space. We are replacing it immediately with authorized copy and will replace any other such unauthorized copy that we become aware of,” the statement continued.

MTA Communications Director Tim Minton released a statement, saying, "Bus shelters are not MTA property and though we would prefer not to have objectionable messages marketed to our customers, we have no power to manage content for these facilities, which are controlled by the City of New York."

According to the Times, the poster has been removed as of Thursday afternoon.

Links at the bottom of the misinformation poster go to sites like Doctors and Scientists United to Save Humanity, which “oppose the injection and the vaccine mandates” and falsely claim “only the vaccinated have full susceptibility and a poor T cell response” to the virus variants.

An email to the group for comment was not immediately returned.

Another link is devoted to the alleged stories of “vaccine long haulers,” while another goes to the CDC’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, which the center states that “a report to VAERS does not mean that a vaccine caused an adverse event.”

The CDC has continuously stated the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective in preventing severe illness.

The ZIP code where the bus stop is located (11213) has a fully vaccinated rated of just 53%, among one of the lower figures in the borough, and even trailing the neighboring Crown Heights ZIP (11216) by 13%, according to city data.

Featured Image Photo Credit: @allisongeroi/Twitter